The Tao of Gaming

Pretty much the only non-Race game to get any love over the last two months is Glory to Rome. The second edition changes a few cards (I need to update my building analysis...)

Today we got in another two games, and I still pull this out. There's a tension between the need to get 1-2 cheap buildings finished (to increase your influence, which limits the number of clients and vault cards) versus getting out a large building, when can completely change the nature of the game. Our first game saw one player able to finish the Catacombs (which ends the game) fairly quickly, so the other players maneuvered to ensure that someone else always led in VP. Few goods got 'stolen' (put into a vault). Eventually the game ended by decking ... a late Sewer let one player keep his stockpile slightly full after merchanting. So he got 4 cards to everyone else's 1-2, which secured 2 bonus chips and the victory.

Our second game was merchant-rich, by comparison, with plenty of legionnaire (and anti-legionnaire) plays. A nice variety, with an ebb-and-flow nature to it.

Now that I've played a few times with the 2nd edition, I've got to say that I like pretty much all of the changes that were made. Race has succeeded beyond my wildest expectations, and I doubt I'll have trouble finding opponents any time soon, so I'm glad that Glory's influence is growing in San Antonio. Hopefully elsewhere, too.

Courtesy of Jeff and Amy, Desktop Tower Defense. Protect your spare change (etc) from bacteria and other malevolent lifeforms using small pellet guns, squirt towers, and air defenses. Annoyingly addictive. Keeps me from posting.

Now that I've got the option of gaming straight after work, the crowds at our gaming sessions have died down. (O tempora! O mores!).

Oh well, I got in a few games of Race and Vegas Showdown, which quietly continues earning a few plays each year. Every card came my way, ensuring my victory's hollowness. I still like it, though.

Meanwhile my Here I Stand PBEM sees the Protestants involved in a military fight. Fortunately I had English allies, since I'm not sure I remember the rules. I need the game to go longer to stand a chance of winning, as several players have a shot at victory this turn. We'll find out soon enough ...

To recap our problem:

You are Earth's Lost Colony. [3 Players, the opponents are Epsilon Eridini and Old Earth]. Your opening hand is:

1. Alien Tech. Institute 2. Alien Rosetta Stone World 3. Destroyed World 4. Drop Ships 5. Galactic Engineers 6. Spice World

What do you discard and what's your first turn plan?

Since many respondents feared commitment (by giving multiple answers) I'm simplifying:

• Several respondents (and some of the voices in Frunk's head) advocated T1 Produce, T2 trade. The Spice World is the lynch-pin to this ... a settle on either turn gives you a four card trade. What to keep besides that varied.
• Tom also produces, but pitches Destroyed World and Galactic Engineers, just to keep the Alien possibility open. (But they are 'probably money.')
• Several others advocated the Explore +1/+1 (I call that the "Greedy explore"). This lets you possibly play a develop (if called, either Drop Ships if you get a suitable military target, or any development). Again, discards varied. Several people split.
• One of the Many Faces of Frunk tries to consume/trade.

Surprisingly (to me), nobody advocates Settle. I think that's mainly the advantage of Earth's Lost Colony showing ... produce is, at worst, gaining you a card a turn unless someone settles for you.

I personally thought that it was obvious to pitch the Alien cards ... you can have an excess of riches. To play both of them would require way too many cards, and the sources aren't obvious. I do think that pitching the Tech Institute (and Galactic Engineers or Drop Ships) is reasonable. The Rosetta Stone provides a discount and produces on a windfall, which may be enough to get a reasonable alien world out and go for a diversified economy (or just a huge trade world). I had really put this out there to see what choice people would make on T1 role.

Incidentally, during the game itself, I settled. I assure you producing or exploring was better. (Because there was an explore on T1, I could drop destroyed world and then Spice World on the next settle, assuming I got no reasonable development, which I didn't). Still, the other planets that came out were better.

There's a lot of tension around the first settle, as Frunk's temptation on Consume/Trade shows ... until the production worlds show up, some players have extra options. So I think that those players should be reluctant to Settle, barring an amazingly good play.

Anyway, I'll be on the lookout for more interesting problems.